Two Palestinians were killed early Friday in confrontations with Israeli forces in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinian medics and the military said. The Palestine Red Crescent Society confirmed the two deaths and said three people were wounded, including one who sustained serious injuries.
The Islamic militant group Hamas said one of those killed was a local commander.
Palestinian health officials say 460 Palestinians, including several dozen children and teens, have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Six months of fighting in Gaza have pushed the tiny Palestinian territory into a humanitarian crisis, leaving more than 1 million people on the brink of starvation. The head of the United States Agency for International Development, Samantha Power, told lawmakers Wednesday she accepted “credible” reports that famine is now occurring in hard-hit northern Gaza. President Joe Biden said this week that Israel is not doing enough to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Israeli bombardments and ground offensives have killed at least 33,360 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 74,993, the Health Ministry says. The ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tally, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.
The war started on Oct. 7 when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis in a surprise attack, mostly civilians. Palestinian militants took around 250 people hostage.
Currently:
— Israel promised to ramp up aid to Gaza dramaticall y, but days later there are few signs of any impact.
— Muslim leaders are ‘out of words’ as they tire of the White House outreach on the war in Gaza.
— An Israeli airstrike in Gaza kills 3 sons and 4 grandchildren of Hamas’ top leader.
— Find more AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here’s the latest:
2 PALESTINIANS ARE KILLED IN THE ISRAELI-OCCUPIED WEST BANK
JERUSALEM — Two Palestinians were killed early Friday in confrontations with Israeli forces in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinian medics and the military said. The Islamic militant group Hamas said one of those killed was a local commander.
The raid took place in the town of Tubas and the adjacent refugee camp of al-Faraa. The Palestine Red Crescent Society confirmed the two deaths and said three people were wounded, including one who sustained serious injuries.
The military said the target of the raid was Mohammed Daraghmeh, a local Hamas commander. It said Daraghmeh was killed in a shootout with Israeli soldiers who discovered weapons in his car. The army alleged that Daraghmeh was planning attacks on Israeli targets, but provided no evidence.
In subsequent confrontations between soldiers and armed Palestinians, a second Palestinian was killed Friday. The army said assailants also hurled explosives at soldiers.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said one of its ambulances was fired at by Israeli forces as medics were trying to treat one of the wounded.
Palestinian health officials say 460 Palestinians, including several dozen children and teens, have been killed by Israeli fire in the West Bank since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, triggered by a deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7. Most were killed in confrontations with Israeli forces who have stepped up raids in the West Bank in recent months, targeting suspected militants. Several other Palestinians have been killed in attacks by militant Israeli settlers.
FRANCE WARNS CITIZENS AGAINST TRAVELING TO ISRAEL, IRAN, LEBANON, AND PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
PARIS — France’s foreign ministry has warned citizens against traveling to Israel, Palestinian territories, Iran and Lebanon in the coming days due to a heightened risk of military escalation in the Middle East.
Iran has been threatening to avenge the deaths of two of its generals killed in an airstrike in the Syrian capital, Damascus, last week. Tehran blames Israel for the strike, although Israel has not commented. Israel has called up additional defense units in anticipation of an attack by either Iran or the many proxy groups it supports in the region.
Faced with risks of a military escalation, the French foreign ministry called on citizens in a statement Friday “to completely refrain” from traveling to the three Middle Eastern countries and the Palestinian territories. The ministry also ordered families of diplomats in Tehran to return to France and suspended all foreign ministry sanctioned missions to Israel, Lebanon, Iran and the Palestinian territories after a crisis meeting Friday, the statement said.
SPAIN AND NORWAY SUPPORT RECOGNIZING A PALESTINIAN STATE
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said that Spain has “publicly committed to recognizing Palestine as a state as soon as possible when the conditions are appropriate and in a way that can have the most positive impact to the peace process.”
Sánchez was in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, as part of a tour that also includes Ireland, to push for peace in Gaza and seek support for recognition of Palestine. His Norwegian counterpart, Jonas Gahr Støre, said that “Norway stands ready to recognize the state of Palestine and to recognize this place, appropriate place in the United Nations.”
The traditional position of the United States and European allies had been that recognition of a Palestinian state should come at the end of successful negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. However, since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, some European leaders have called for such recognition as an interim step that would create a political horizon for Palestinians, especially at a time when Israel’s right-wing government is adamantly opposed to the creation of a Palestinian state. Sanchez has been one of the most vocal advocates of early recognition.